There is never a dull moment with Paula Lambert. Spend just a couple minutes with her and you can understand immediately how it is possible that fresh mozzarella went from being virtually unknown to award-winning in a matter of years. The Mozzarella Company is one of our industry’s founders in that she helped create the market and the movement of artisan cheese. Listen closely to her stories- they contain invaluable insight into how to make an artisan cheese business successful.

Sometimes the most we can hope for in times of transition is that we will look back on them and feel proud of how we conducted ourselves while we were going through them. One of the benefits of the audio portion of our project lagging so seriously behind our actual tour is that there is an opportunity to listen to these segments and learn where some of our favorite farmers have come from- to honor their journey in this industry. Dripping Springs, Texas is fortunate to have this family-oriented, farmstead producer in their community. I hope to make it back there soon so I can ask Amelia how many goats they’re milking now…

Character. That is the first word that comes to mind when I think of Chef John Folse- followed closely by Dreamer. I’ve never met anyone like him and it was such a pleasure to spend a day with him learning about Cajun and Creole traditions. His passion is palpable and his projects are huge. We really dig this about him. Since we visited, Bittersweet has come out with a few more dairy products- namely yogurt, ice cream, cottage cheese and a cheese called Vache Sante.

Honestly we could have almost posted this interview in its entirety because Alyce and Doug are so engaging. I never get tired of listening to them talk about cheesemaking or dairying let alone any of the other million hobbies they do. Listening to them over the past weeks I have been reminded of how absolutely they achieved their mission to create an operation that works for the two of them. They are back down to about a dozen milkers- all Guernseys and Alyce has taken on a big role as the president of the Raw Milk Cheesemakers Association. Listen and enjoy.

Times are tough for many these days. We want to do what we can to help members of our new community here in Oregon and we’re inviting you to help too. It does not take much to make a difference and we can’t think of a more worthy organization at this time than the Oregon Food Bank- a wonderful and effective organization that helps hundreds of thousands of people throughout Oregon and southern Washington. The Oregon Food Bank supports a network of food distribution centers throughout the state and works to eliminate the root causes of hunger through advocacy, nutrition education, learning gardens and public education.

As the economy slides the number of people relying on the programs supported and administered by the Oregon Food Bank is steadily rising. Many of us are consumers committed to supporting local growers, producers, and chefs because we believe not only in agriculture but in the importance of healthy regional food systems. Organizations like the Oregon Food Bank work to ensure that none of the food produced goes to waste- every day they are out there recovering and redistributing food from individuals, wholesalers, retailers, and also gleaning from regional farms- this work honors the value of food and the resources that go into producing it. This is an important time to support this part of our food system and those in need. If everyone does a little bit (or a lot!) we can have a huge impact during these challenging times.

Help us reach our goal to raise $5000 for the Oregon Food Bank! To donate you can click here or on the Blog for Food logo above. When you make your online donation please enter ‘blog for food’ in the tribute section of the Oregon Food Bank page so that your donation counts toward our campaign. You can also send checks directly to the Oregon Food Bank at PO Box 55370, Portland, OR 97238- be sure to mention the Blog for Food campaign!

Listening to our conversation with Jessica and Jeremy Little is a perfect reminder of just how accessible the people making our food can be. Their honesty and humility still blow me away, not to mention their tenacity. Their operation is an inspiring example of the generation of cheesemakers who are broadening the artisan cheese market with high quality products. The real beauty of what they do (beyond their delicious cheeses) is that they do it with gratitude for the founders of the artisan cheese movement who, in addition to developing the products we’ve enjoyed for the past decades, also developed the market that newcomers get to step into today.

I have been an avid listener of KCRW’s weekly show Good Food for a couple years now. Recently the show’s host, Evan Kleinman, interviewed me about our project. Please take a listen to the segment and keep listening to Good Food. Progress on our podcasts has been slow but we promise we’re still plugging away at it and hope to offer new posts more expediently.

Thank you to everyone who has sent us such positive feedback on the podcasts that are already out there.

Steve Tate does such a nice job articulating the vision of the farm and dairy that his family runs. We tip our hats to Ginny Tate, Steve’s sister, who mustered the confidence years ago to continue developing and restoring her farm in the face of doubt and ridicule from local residents. Their farm is a beautiful example of the impact one single farm, and family, can have on its surrounding community.